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摘要

As director of public works for Liberty, Mo., Steven Hansen has seen firsthand how catastrophes like the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and Hurricane Katrina affect public works nationwide. The attacks spurred a calling for better protection of critical infrastructure. Rising oil costs have caused fuel and paving costs to soar, cutting into already strained budgets. While the disasters highlighted the importance of public works departments in emergency response, he says, more needs to be done to develop relationships among local public works departments and federal safety agencies.